Sunday, January 29, 2012

SATURDAY’S GAMES:
In Moose Jaw, F Justin Kirsch had a goal and three assists as the Warriors scored a 5-2 victory over the Swift Current Broncos. . . . Moose Jaw F Cam Braes broke a 1-1 tie with his 29th goal 41 seconds into the second period. . . . Kirsch then drew assists on three straight goals and scored a fourth before the period ended. . . . Freshman F Coda Gordon got his 20th goal of the season for the Broncos. . . . The Warriors were 3-6 on the PP; the Broncos were 2-4. . . . Moose Jaw has points in seven straight games (6-0-1). . . .

In Saskatoon, the Blades scored the game’s last seven goals and beat the Regina Pats, 8-1. . . . F Josh Nicholls had two goals and an assist for the Blades, who also got two goals from each of F Brett Stovin and D Darren Dietz. . . . Regina F Jordan Weal picked up an assist to run his point streak to 13 games. . . . Saskatoon GM/head coach Lorne Molleken won his 549th game, moving him past Ernie (Punch) McLean and into second place on the WHL’s all-time list. Only Ken Hodge (742) has more WHL coaching victories than Molleken. . . . Molleken also has coached in 972 games. He is one shy of tying Peter Anholt for third spot on the WHL’s all-time list. . . .

In Edmonton, G Adam Morrison turned back 28 shots as the Vancouver Giants scored a 3-2 victory over the Oil Kings. . . . The Giants opened up a 3-0 lead early in the third period and hung on after the Oil Kings closed the gap. . . . Vancouver F Brendan Gallagher scored his first goal for the Giants since missing almost two weeks with a shoulder injury. He’s got 29. . . . Vancouver F Cain Franson scored his 20th goal. . . . F Thomas Foster, the Giants’ first pick in the 2011 bantam draft, made his WHL debut. He played against his brother T.J., who plays for the Oil Kings. . . . Oil Kings D Griffin Reinhart, in his third game since missing a couple of weeks with an undisclosed injury, left in the second period and didn’t return. . . .

In Lethbridge, D Josh Morrissey scored twice to help the Prince Albert Raiders to a 6-3 victory over the Hurricanes. . . . Morrissey, 1 16-year-old from Calgary, has 29 points, including seven goals, in 46 games. He also is plus-11 on a team that has struggled defensively. . . . F Anthony Bardaro had four assists for the Raiders, while F Mike Winther and F Shane Danyluk each had a goal and two assists. . . . Raiders G Cole Holowenko stopped 34 shots. . . .

In Medicine Hat, the Calgary Hitmen scored the game’s last three goals, all in the third period, and beat the Tigers, 5-2. . . . F Alex Gogolev broke a 2-2 tie at 1:28 of the third on a PP. It was his 20th goal of the season. . . . The Hitmen led 2-0 after one period; the teams were tied 2-2 after two. . . . Medicine Hat F Emerson Etem had two assists, but had his goal-scoring streak end at 11 games. . . . The Hitmen have won five in a row and 13 of 14. They are at home to the Tri-City Americans today. . . . The Tigers had won six in a row. . . . Calgary G Brandon Glover stopped 28 shots. . . . Medicine Hat G Tyler Bunz missed in his first opportunity to set the franchise record for career victories. He has tied Matt Keetley’s record of 105. . . . The Hitmen were 3-3 on the PP; the Tigers went 2-5. . . . The games’ first five goals were scored on the PP. . . . Calgary D Alex Roach was back after serving a three-game suspension. He had a first-period PP goal. . . .

In Red Deer, G Corbin Boes stopped 39 shots to lead the Brandon Wheat Kings to a 3-2 victory over the Rebels. . . . F Turner Elson scored twice for Red Deer, including the game’s first goal at 9:01 of the first period. . . . D Ryan Pulock pulled Brandon even at 11:31 of the first and F Mark Stone put the visitors out front at 19:58. Stone has 32 goals. . . . Referees Matt Kirk and Matt Thurston handed out three minor penalties, all to Brandon. . . . Red Deer F Adam Kambeitz, who left Friday’s game with an ankle injury, will be out at least six weeks. The Rebels captain joins D Justin Weller and G Patrik Bartosak on the long-term injury list. . . .

In Prince George, F Josh Winquist scored twice to help the Everett Silvertips to a 4-3 victory over the Cougars. . . . The Silvertips swept the doubleheader, having won 5-2 on Friday night. . . . This is Everett’s first winning streak of the season. . . . The victory lifted Everett past the Cougars and into ninth place in the 10-team Western Conference. . . . Everett now is four points out of a playoff spot. . . . Winquist, who has 12 goals, scored twice in the second period to stretch Everett’s lead to 4-1. . . . F Spencer Asuchak scored for the Cougars in his 200th WHL game. . . . Prince George D Daniel Gibb, who left Friday night’s game, didn’t play last night. . . . The Cougars, who have lost five straight, will play in Victoria on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, the first time the team has played in the B.C. capital since it left for Prince George after the 1993-94 season. . . .

In Victoria, linemates Tim Bozon, Colin Smith and J.C. Lipon each scored once as the Kamloops Blazers dumped the Royals, 5-1. . . . The Royals had beaten the Blazers 4-2 on Friday. . . . The Blazers, who haven’t lost three straight all season, had lost their previous two games. . . . F Brendan Ranford’s shorthanded goal broke a 1-1 tie at 14:38 of the second. He’s got 26 goals. . . . The Blazers lead the WHL with 15 shorthanded goals. . . . D Landon Cross had two assists for Kamloops. . . . F Tim Traber scored his second goal of the season for the Royals, opening the scoring at 11:01 of the first period. . . . Kamloops G Cam Lanigan stopped 26 shots. . . . It was Pink in the Rink Night and the Royals wore pink uniforms to support cancer research. The promotion-filled evening drew 7,006 fans. . . . The victory lifted the Blazers back into first place overall. They went into the night tied with the Tri-City Americans and Edmonton Oil Kings. The Americans were idle; the Oil Kings lost at home. . . . The Americans are in Calgary today. . . .

In Kent, Wash., F Marcel Noebels earned three assists as the Portland Winterhawks beat the host Seattle Thunderbirds, 8-3. . . . The Winterhawks acquired Noebels from Seattle on Jan. 10. . . . He now has seven points in nine games with Portland. . . . F Sven Baertschi and F Brendan Leipsic each had two goals and an assist for Portland. . . . Portland G Mac Carruth stopped 51 shots in earning his 30th victory of the season. . . . The Winterhawks have won three in a row. . . . The Thunderbirds held their Teddy Bear and collected 4,832 stuffed toys. . . .

In Spokane, the Chiefs came back from a three-goal deficit to beat the Kootenay Ice 5-4 in OT on D Brenden Kichton’s goal at 3:10. . . . Chiefs F Darren Kramer forced OT with his 18th goal at 17:16 of the third. . . . D Corbin Baldwin had gotten the Chiefs to within one with his fourth goal at 14:31 of the third, via the PP. . . . The Ice scored three first-period goals on six shots. . . . The Chiefs then outshot the Ice 18-4 in the second and cut the deficit to 3-2. . . . Spokane G Eric Williams came on to start the second period and stopped 18 of 19 shots. . . . F Joe Antilla had two goals for the Ice. . . . The Chiefs are 5-0-1 in their last six and are in a fourth-place tie with Vancouver in the Western Conference. Spokane holds three games in hand. . . .
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SATURDAY’S CHECKING-FROM-BEHIND COUNT:
F Ryan Olsen, Saskatoon.
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in the BCHL, the Penticton Vees ran their winning streak to 28 games with an 8-1 victory over the SilverBacks in Salmon Arm. . . . That is one shy of the BCHL record that is held by the 1989-90 New Westminster Royals. . . . The Vees are next scheduled to play Friday against the visiting Chilliwack Chiefs. As Fraser Rodgers, the radio voice of the Vees, mentioned on his blog, Harvey Smyl, the Chiefs' head coach, was an assistant with the Royals in 1989-90.
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Today’s good read comes from Jim Matheson at the Edmonton Journal. Matty’s Hockey World is right here and, as usual, it’s full of all kinds of good stuff, including an update on former WHLer Brantt Myhres, who seems to have found some peace.
 
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